Gujarat govt to launch campaign on dos and don’ts of water drainage

Gujarat government has put the focus on improper water drainage habits of people that cause jams in underground drainage networks. (Express Photo by Gurmeet Singh)

As it plans to come up with Waste Water Reuse Policy, the Gujarat government has put the focus on improper water drainage habits of people that cause jams in underground drainage networks. These habits create problem in the effective implementation of water reuse policy. To remedy this, the government is planning to launch an awareness campaign on the dos and don’ts of waste water disposal. “All the municipal corporations and most of the municipalities in Gujarat have underground drainage network. Now, when we are planning to have waste water reuse policy, it is very important that the waste water is drained and collected properly. We have realised that many bad habits of people, like flushing condoms, sanitary pads, razors, diapers, cotton swabs, hair etc in toilets cause jam in the drainage network, resulting in the overflowing of gutters, rendering it useless until the jam is cleared,” said a senior government officer.

Similarly, people also tend to dispose waste food, waste vegetables, plastics etc. in kitchen basins which can cause jam in the gutter. “These are small things, but they matter a lot when we plan to conserve as much water as possible. And so, we are planning to launch an awareness campaign to inculcate proper waste water disposal habits among public,” the officer added.

As part of the campaign, the government will take help of volunteers and try to reach out to people. This will include making of short films on the theme and making them viral on social media by the volunteers. Special pamphlets will also be distributed among the public. This year, Gujarat is facing unprecedented water shortage owing to the less availability of Narmada water. And the Gujarat government has been exploring a number of options of water conservation and optimal use of the available water.

Currently, a major water conservation campaign — Sujlam Suflam Jal Abhiyan — is going on under the leadership of Chief Minister Vijay Rupani. The government has also changed the General Development Control Regulations (GDCR) under which it has been made mandatory for new buildings to have dual flush systems in toilets to get Building Use (BU) permission.

On the same lines, the state government is planning to have its Waste Water Reuse policy soon under which recycled water can be collected and put into non-potable use like providing it to industries and giving it for irrigation.